A purashcharan, that is, the worship of a deity performed with a tantra, mantra and chanting (japa) and the prescribed rituals are done to enable the mantra to give the expected results, before commencing the chanting of the mantra.
All mantras originate from Om. It is a symbol of Brahman, God and the Vedas. Hence, the mantra ‘Om’ can bestow the Final Liberation (Moksha). This itself is the bija or the gist of the Vedas.
Meditation and Chanting – Meditation [superconscious state (samadhi)] is not continuous but chanting can occur continuously. In order to blend with The Infinite Principle continuous spiritual practice is essential.
The japamala (rosary) usually consists of 108 beads in addition to the merubead. The four parts (charans) of each of the twenty-seven lunar asterisms (nakshatras) that is 27 x 4 equals one hundred and eight. These are represented by 108 beads in the mala.
Just as sugar has sweetness as its quality, so also the nature of the mind is to think continuously or to harbour a certain emotion arising from some thought. In the beginning when chanting, everyone gets various thoughts due to the impressions from previous births.
As long as chanting is going on it prevents the development of new impressions about other things on the subconscious mind.
One should repeat (chant) the Name of the family deity (kuladevata), which refers to both the male or the female family deity. Depending upon which family deity’s worship is conducive for his spiritual progress, an individual is born in that particular family.
Uniting the embodied soul with Supreme God through the medium of chanting the Name of the Deity is known as Namsankirtanyoga.